Pours a hazy orange with a foamy tan head that settles to wisps of film on top of the beer. Small dots of lace slowly drip into the remaining beer on the drink down. Tiny chunks of sediment are seen floating around in the beer after the pour. Smell is of malt, caramel, toffee, fruit, and alcohol aromas. Taste is much the same with fruit and toffee flavors on the finish. There is a decent alcohol kick with each sip as well. This beer has a good level of carbonation with a crisp but sticky mouthfeel. Overall, this is a good beer that is super tasty but quite boozy and strong.

Bottled in 07, it pours with large floaties and a modest, foamy head that disappears. Prunes, plums, dates, and figs underlie rich, sweet treacley malt, with notes of toffee surfacing late. Flavor is very sweet, but there's a bitter, dry finish, and sherry notes present themselves in the aftertaste. Figs and plums underlie caramel malt. There's still some alcohol warmth. I was hoping for less sweetness and more complex esters, but still a nice brew.

Had this as a night cap last night and man did it help me sleep easy.Poured into a pokal a full rich clear golden with a minimal head wich was to be expected,whoo the sweet alcohol really hits in the nose with some caramel and grain but the alcohol shows itself in a huge way.A full bodied sweeter sipping brew,it has a big caramel and fruit flavor with sweet burning alcohol showing thru more as it warmed,in the finish a passing vegetal note comes thru.A decent brew but its made to be drank slow and easy.

Appearance - This is a brilliantly clear slightly darkened orange in color with no head whatsoever due to the massive alcohol content. Sweet.

Smell - The first sense I get is of quality triple sec with a surprising absence of booze. I also am finding a rich but broken down malt base and some sound wood notes without that annoying vanilla fragrance. Nice again.

Taste - The booze comes through a little bit more at the taste as does the orange. The malt from the nose actually steps back a bit making this a big fruity booze-fest. The wood again is quite prominent and dominant.

Mouthfeel - This is medium-bodied with no alcohol sting whatsoever, which is absolutely amazing. There is a fascinating malty bitterness at the very back of the tongue and of course no carbonation at all.

Drinkability - I enjoy the high-octane stuff as anyone who knows me can attest. This is probably the highest quality booze bier that I've ever had. It is incredibly smooth with no sense of alcohol. You wouldn't even know of its high ABV except halfway through the glass you start falling down a lot. Extremely well done - a class act for sure.

Update - I had a chance to review this again in 2010. This is really an incredible beer and worth of the highest regards. It is a masterful effort and incorporates well the record-setting high ABV in a tasty, flavorful beverage.

The flavor is doppelbockesque with a thick, rich, malt base that has a high-octane orange charge in it. What the brewer has mastered though is the blending of the big alcohol and the sweetish malts. It's like a liquid malt love of some kind. Either way it is an amazing production and as a helles DB in a class all by its lonesome self. This is actually one of my favorite beers of all time.

A 750ml bottle shared with my wife. It didn't look like a doppelbock, being a pretty light amber color with a small white head. Caramel malt and honey aroma. The alcohol hits you in the face when you take a sip, followed by a strong malt presence, and a pervasive incredible sweetness. This beer was way too sweet, and the alcohol was way too intrusive. I doubt I'll be drinking this beer again.

2007 bottling with the red and silver label as pictured. Pours a clear pale yellow body with a skimpy white head that quickly falls into a film. Aroma is malty and bready with some phenolics that suggest a Dogfish Head 120. Some vague floral hops. Medium body with a somewhat syrupy mouthfeel. Malty and earthy taste with some floral hops. Warming alcohol is very whiskey like. A nice sipper on a winter night but I prefer the regular Samichlaus to this Helles. This one could use some more aging.

Very sweet, slightly alcoholic aroma, no hops, little malt. Small head dissipated very quickly. light carbonation.

Very sweet and somewhat hot. It as a quite full mouthfeel similar to a very sweet red wine, almost syrupy. It gives a good warming feeling.

Overall I'd say that for a beer brewed 3 years ago this is still very young, if you've got a cellar going toss this down there for a few more years and give it another go. I wouldn't drink this fresh again.

Appearance is slightly hazy orange with a frothy white head that lingers for a moment then settles in a ring around the glass. Faint smells of bready malt with notes of cherries and raisins in the background. Noble hops finally appear as the beer warms up a bit. Tastes much more upfront with loads of bready malt blended with flowery noble hops. Medium to medium-full body balanced decently with moderate carbonation and you can definately detect that 14% ABV with a decent alcohol warmth as you swallow, but it's not a harsh finish at all. Overall a nicely balanced beer for such a high ABV and definately worth seeking out.

From taste notes. Appearance: Pours brilliant garnet, almost looks like a mix of a chardonnay and a red. Has legs. Smell: Smells more like a wine with perfumy notes than a beer. Taste: A touch of fruit in the taste suggesting cherry, a little sweet but a deft hop touch on the end provides balancing bitterness. Mouthfeel: Full body, very low carbonation, a little hot. Overall: Sweet and hot. Something you would reach for instead of a mixed drink or a port.

Pours a light copper color with virtually no head. After the beer settles, there are a few bubbles hanging onto the glass for dear life, but that's it.

Smells very sweet, a honey smell dominates everything else, and there's a faint tinge of alcohol that increases as the beer warms.

This beer tastes very sweet. The honey is most prevalent, but it seems as if there's a hint of sweet grapes in there. The alcohol is not very noticeable, impressive for its ABV. The alcohol does become more evident as you get to the bottom of the glass.

The mouthfeel is nothing special, good carbonation and decently smooth, but that's about it.

The drinkability should be way up there because the alcohol is so well hidden, but the sweetness is just too overpowering.

Worth trying, but if it has to be one or the other I'd go for the Bier.

Shimmering golden-peach color with stunning clarity. The head is particularly light and wispy, tiny bubbles and really airy, almost like dish soap. Thick head initially but it thinned to a crown in a matter of seconds. So quick it was like watching something in time-lapse. Just a little swirl and you can see this will be sludgier, chewier, and heftier than your usual beer.

Aroma is fruity, ultra-sweet and medicinal, but the alcohol rears its head too aggressively. A real nostril-flaring aftershave attack. Once it started to singe my nose-hairs, I couldn't get past it and couldn't smell much else. Maybe peach-dunked moonshine. Unappealing.

Flavor is also reminiscent of moonshine made with Indian peaches and sugar. More like schnapps or other liqueurs than beer, but that's the beauty of it. Sharp peach, sharp sugar, huge alcohol glow, chalky honey, not balanced and not subtle. Huge fruit/sugar/syrup overload. More alcohol in the finish. A slow sipper, one that benefits from hardly any chill at all.

Unsurprisingly syrupy texture with just the right amount of carbonation to keep it from choking you on thickness. A wonderful presence in the mouth, and probably the best aspect of this creation.

How is this a doppelbock? Imperial Maibock is more like it, although that's just my own silly interpretation. Whatever the case, don't pick up the red-label Helles if you're expecting the normal Samichlaus--this ain't it (and that's better). It's enjoyable to some degree and there's something to be said for being able to make an 11.2 oz. bottle last some 90 minutes or so. Proceed with caution--it's not the greatest of the big classic big beers.

Pours a thin clear lager yellow with little to no head. nose is of an intense lager. The taste is very very interesting. It is very thin up front but quickly turns to some dark fruit taste (didnt expect that) This is very tasty and has almost a barleywine sugar taste to it. The mouthfeel is nice and thick and the aftertaste lingers forever!! I actually occasionally prefer this to samichlaus. Good brew, should do great in my cellar.

Even a rough pour will bring up only a diminutive head on Samiclaus Helles. That's understandable in that it's 14% alcohol, but surely the extra body should make up for it. Not the case. It's amber body appears deeper, almost copperish, in the glass, but when held to the light it reveals sparkling golden highlights. A fair amount of very tiny bubbles climb steadily upward, indicating that there's a fair amount of carbonation to it; and what delicate cottony head was initially formed benefits from it. Alas, it fades quickly, and beyond that only tiny spots of lacing are left about the glass.

The aroma is clean and malty. It's mainly grainy, but there's also a hint of fruitiness in its sweetness.

In the mouth it's full bodied, but not over-done, and silky smooth - far from syrupy... of course, the alcohol is helping to cut the sugars as well. The delicate carbonation is just enough to lend a gentle caress to the palate.

The flavor is, not surprisingly, very rich. Also, probably not surprisingly, it's not really that complex. This is the blonde version, so of course it's going to be more straightforward in character. It offers a healthy dose of grainy malt, a flicker of hot alcohol (but not too much), and a moderately fruity sweetness in the finish. There are some hops present as well, but they can't compete with the (almost candyish) sweetish malt up-front, and tend to make themselves known only across the middle and into the finish. They're herbal, and mildly spicy (or is that the alcohol that's spicy?).

Overall, it's remarkably well done. The alcohol is kept in check, and it's balanced. The flavor is rich and satiating, but not cloying. (This is truly "liquid bread"). The appearance is great, but the head could be much better; and the aroma is right on. Worth trying! I could even see using this as a cordial at a Christmas dinner. Very nice.

I've enjoyed several regular Samichlaus over the last few months, and when I saw the helles on the shelf, I just had to try it. I must warn you prior to my review that I think this beer should, as a rule, be cellared for a while...I'll review it again in a year or two (or three), and my impression of it will probably improve dramatically.

Appearance: Poured into a 19-ounce dimpled glass mug (the one from the Savvy Six-Pack sold on this site), this beer is sparkling clear, with a color about halfway between "pale ale" and "amber lager." An average pour yields a one-finger head that dwindles to a faint cap fairly quickly. Minimal lacing is observed during drinking.

Smell: Smells like a beefed-up German Oktoberfestbier to me. The alcohol is perceptible in the nose, which is (in my experience) a rare thing for a beer this sweet. I pick up aromas of honey, flowers, and LOTS of malt.

Taste: Essentially follows the nose, in that the two most prominent flavors are honey and astringent alcohol (but not in that order). The malt is certainly there, but DAMN -- the alcohol just about overpowers everything else about this beer. Again, I suspect it would vastly improve with age. I plan to test that theory over the next few years.

Mouthfeel: Noticeablly thinner and less full than standard Samichlaus. Feels kind of like a festbier. By that, I mean it seems SLIGHTLY heavier than your average European lager, but nowhere close to...say, an English barleywine.

Drinkability -- If it weren't for the obvious -- and detrimental -- alcohol heat and astringency that overwhelms the rest of the drinking experience, maybe it'd be more drinkable. As it is, this stuff is very difficult to finish, even when sipped slowly. Certainly not a drain pour-type of beer, but probably just a beer that's not "ready" yet. Let these babies sit in your cellar (or on the retailer's shelves) for a year or two before popping one open.

11.2oz bottle poured into a chalice. Pours a golden orange color with a very thin white head that quickly disappears. The aroma features some malt, a touch of caramel and a good whiff of alcohol. The taste to no surprise starts out smooth and malty and finishes with a warming alcohol punch. I am not a huge fan of this offering, it is just not my thing.